S.143A NI Act | No Interim Compensation In Cheque Bounce Case If Accused's Defence Is Prima Facie Plausible: Gauhati High Court

The Gauhati High Court has held that where there are disputed questions requiring adjudication through evidence, it may not be prudent to grant interim compensation under Section 143-A of the Negotiable Instruments Act at that stage.Justice Pranjal Das accordingly set aside a trial court order directing payment of 20% of the cheque amount as interim compensation. The bench observed, "The court has to be satisfied about a prima facie case before granting interim compensation. The court to make such prima facie determination has to see the merits of the case put forth by the complainant and the merits of the defence put forth by the accused. It is also stated that if the defence of the accused is prima facie found to be plausible, the court may exercise discretion in refusing interim compensation."The above ruling came in a criminal revision which arose from a cheque-bounce complaint under Section 138 of the NI Act relating to a cheque for Rs. 20,00,000, which was dishonoured on the ground of “drawer's signature differs”.The petitioner/accused denied issuance of the cheque and the signature, asserted that he did not maintain the account in question and also pointed out that alleging forgery of his signature, he had lodged a complaint leading to registration of a case under Sections 420/468/471 IPC.The Court in its judgement noted that Petitioner's submissions were supported by the testimony of the branch manager.Considering the matter in its entirety, the Court held that there are disputed questions which will necessitate proper adjudication through evidence and only then, it would be possible to answer the question as to whether the accused petitioner incurred criminal liability under section 138 of the NI Act.“So, in such a situation and keeping in mind the principles laid down in Rakesh Ranjan Shrivastava (supra) – I come to the considered opinion that it may not be prudent to grant interim compensation at this stage, invoking the powers under section 143-A of NI Act. This is despite the projected financial difficulties of the respondent no. 2/complainant.” it added.Case Title: Sri Madhu Ram Deka v. The State of Assam & Anr.Case Number: Crl.Rev.P./396/2024Click Here To Read Judgement

S.143A NI Act | No Interim Compensation In Cheque Bounce Case If Accused's Defence Is Prima Facie Plausible: Gauhati High Court

Bhavya Singh

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